Even though it’s been a good five years since we’ve been able to rattle off any of the current characters’ names on ER without first consulting IMDb, we still hold a certain nostalgic fondness for the show, thanks entirely to the ensemble cast that anchored its mid-nineties glory days. And now, as the show winds down, some of those original cast members are making their way back to the show to officially close their character arcs. The most anticipated of these returns happened during last night’s episode, as both Dr. Doug Ross and Nurse Carol Hathaway (George Clooney and Juliana Margulies, obvie) were featured in a serendipity-laden plot that saw them successfully convincing a grandmother (played by Susan Sarandon) to donate her coma-stricken grandson’s kidneys to “some doctor in Chicago†(no spoilers!). While we were slightly disappointed that Clooney didn’t reinstitute the head-bobbing acting style he patented in the early days of his career, he was able to effortlessly turn on the kind of relentless charm that propelled him from failed TV actor into A-List Hollywood actor. We’ve got two clips of Clooney’s final ER appearance, including one with Dr. Ross and Nurse Hathaway in bed (!), for you after the cut.
In a nice twist, Dr. Doug Ross (George Clooney) realizes that life has gone on at County General Hospital without him: